University of Kentucky UKnowledge XXI International Grassland Congress / VIII International Grassland Congress Proceedings International Rangeland Congress Control of Noxious Weed Cenchrus biflorus—Effect of Lablab as a Cover Crop F. Peter Wandera Kenya Agricultural Research Institute, Kenya A. Abdullahi Department of Agricultural Research, Botswana Follow this and additional works at: https://uknowledge.uky.edu/igc Part of the Plant Sciences Commons, and the Soil Science Commons This document is available at https://uknowledge.uky.edu/igc/21/16-1/29 The XXI International Grassland Congress / VIII International Rangeland Congress took place in Hohhot, China from June 29 through July 5, 2008. Proceedings edited by Organizing Committee of 2008 IGC/IRC Conference Published by Guangdong People's Publishing House This Event is brought to you for free and open access by the Plant and Soil Sciences at UKnowledge. It has been accepted for inclusion in International Grassland Congress Proceedings by an authorized administrator of UKnowledge. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Multifunctional Grasslands in a Changing World Volume Ⅱ 瞯 8 27 瞯 ] Control of noxious weed Cenchrus bi f lorus — effect of lablab as a cover crop F .P . W andera1 and A . A bdullahi 2 １ Kenya A gricultural Research Institute‐Muguga South , P . O Box 30148‐00100 , N airobi Kenya . 2 Department o f A gricultural Research , Priv ate Bag 0033 , Gaborone , Botsw ana . (contact E‐mail : w anderaf peter＠ yahoo .com) Key words : noxious weed ,cenchrus biflorus ,control ,lablab Introduction Cenchrus bi f lorus Roxb . ( Burgrass ) is an annual grass , which is rapidly spreading in ewteastle.rn１９a９n０d central Botswana . It occurs in neighboring countries such as South Africa , Namibia , and Swaziland ( Russell )１９. ９I０t is abundant in the African Sahel in low rainfall woodland savanna where it is utilized for grazing ( Skerman and Riveros . C . bi f lorus ) Heavy infestations of are in pasture and range , but the grass is now found growing in cultivated areas as well . The grass is a problem weed because of its objectionable burs , which adhere to animal skin , cloth , shoes , and machinery . It is through attachment to animal skin and cloth that gives the grass a highly effective means of spreading . The burs are harmful to livestock and will cause ulcers in the mouths of grazing animals . Control of this weCedenctherruesfore is important to agricultural production . This paper reports the effects of using Lablab as a cover crop to control biflorus . Methodology ２００ ４５０‐５００ The experiment was conducted in an area ( km NE Gaborone) receiving mm rainfall on sandy loam C . bi f lorus soils , and heavily infested with . Two treatments ( with and without Lab８lab２) ５were comp‐ared . The experim１e５ntal layout was a random２ize５d complete block design with four replicat７io５ns ５. ０Plots measured x . m . in２t６er６p６l７ot distance was . m and between blocks . m . Lablab was planted at a spacing of x cm giving a population of , lants per ha . Plant Cenchrus bi f lorus p counts , number o１f ８burs and plant height for and plant cover for Lablab , were recorded every three weeks after planting till weeks later . Results and Discussion １２ １ Once the lablab c２anopy developed weeks after planting ( Figure ) it effectively suppressed the number of plants of the noxiou１s weed ( Figure ) . Subsequent recruitment o１f０w０e％ed seedlings is also reduced through reduced number oeft baul rs２０p０e３r plant ( Table ) . Lablab was observed in Nigeria to have control of weeds including Congo grass ( Ekeleme . ) . However plant height is not affected by lablab . Figure 2 E f f ect o f lablab on C . Figure 1 Ground o f lablab in p lots p lant population over a biflorus １８ p rev iously dominated by period o f weeksin Botsw ana . C . biflorus weed in Botswana . Table 1 Mean number o f burs o f C . bi f lorus under lablab and control p lots in Botsw ana . T reatment No . of Burs ７４８b Lablab １２３０a Control Conclusion Cenchrus bi f lorus Lablab can be used to control noxious weeds in grazing areas . Using Lablab has added advantage because it is a high protein feed . Reference ２００３ Ekeleme , F . , Akobundu Okezie I . , Fadayomi Omosuyi , R . , Chikoye , D . ,and WAebeadyoTmeichYneokleoegny ,１A７ . (１ １‐１)３Characterization of legume cover crops for weed suppression in the moist savanna of Nigeria . ( ) . Grasslands/Rangelands Production Systems——— Integrated Management of Harmful Organisms of Grasslands/Rangelands.